“And when it came time to write his party’s platform, comprehensive reform never made it in,” Obama said before the institution’s annual gala in Washington, D.C. “So, you’ve got to ask yourself: if Sen. McCain won’t stand up to opponents of reform at his own convention, how can you trust him to stand up for change in Washington?”

Obama said that he admired it when McCain had bucked his party on immigration reform in the past, but said that was a stance McCain walked away from when running for president.

“When he was running for his party’s nomination, he abandoned his stance, and said he wouldn’t even support his own legislation if it came up for a vote,” Obama said to the audience. “Well, I don’t know about you, but I think it’s time for a president who won’t walk away from comprehensive immigration reform when it becomes politically unpopular.”

Wooing the key demographic, Obama told the crowd that he’s not taking one single Hispanic vote for granted this election, referencing John Kerry’s close loss in New Mexico in 2004.

“I need you. I need you to win,” Obama said in closing.

Obama will take his campaign west next week — campaigning in Colorado on Monday.